ROUGH ROAD AHEAD
After Hell is Real, furnace temperature is about to get cranked up on Crew
Not to diminish Hell is Real, but after losing to Cincinnati 2-1 in the Hell is Real derby-darby in Columbus, the Crew will be truly temperature tested in the weeks to come. It’ll be a miracle if they don’t melt.
I was not at the first leg of the 2023 battle of Ohio at the new Crew Stadium Saturday night. I was celebrating a college graduate who majored in history and now must find a job. Celebrate while you can, I say. I’ve watched the full-game replay and had a chance to digest what looked and sounded like a raucous night within the friendly confines. It was a terrific television, too, although for Crew fans it had to feel like a Joe Frazier left hook to the kidney.
It was historic. It was Hell is Real − the best rivalry in the league right now − and it was between the reigning Supporters’ Shield winners and the defending MLS Cup champions. Cincinnati had never before won in Columbus. With the victory, Cincinnati snapped the Crew’s 27-game home unbeaten streak, which dated to April 29 of last year. And so forth. It was rich. “Now, on this one, it's been a long time that we haven't lost at home. We knew that something like this [could happen]. I'm not concerned because the idea is to be pragmatic, to be honest and to move forward. The idea is to move forward. Yes, this is Cincinnati; I'm not happy with that, my players are not happy also with that, but we have to move forward. We know that we're going to be able to get better.” Wilfried Nancy
Crew coach
Cincinnati’s victory does not avenge the epic loss the Crew pinned on the Garys in the Eastern Conference final in Cincinnati late last fall. The Crew ripped the soul out of the Queen City that night. Still, it was a sip of ambrosia that must have tasted awfully sweet for the visitors.
Cincinnati was better. Full stop. The Crew made a few mistakes defensively and, when they had the ball they did not have the sharpness they normally possess. They did not discomfit their opponents’ defense like they so often do.
That said, the Crew weren't terrible. They just didn't have enough of those “Crew moments” to which their fans have become accustomed (spoiled?) under coach Wilfried Nancy. A questionable non-call – Acosta blew up Alex Matan in the box early in the second half, and it should have led to a penalty kick – didn't help the home team.
Nancy told reporters he had a “weird feeling” before the game, like something wasn't quite right.
Afterward he said, “Now, on this one, it's been a long time that we haven't lost at home. We knew that something like this [could happen]. I'm not concerned because the idea is to be pragmatic, to be honest and to move forward. The idea is to move forward. Yes, this is Cincinnati; I'm not happy with that, my players are not happy also with that, but we have to move forward. We know that we're going to be able to get better.”
Last year, LAFC were the defending MLS Cup champions. They made it back to the Cup final – and lost 2-1 to the Crew in Columbus. It was a remarkable run. By the end of it, according to an accounting in the Los Angeles Times, LAFC had traveled 63,000 miles to four different countries and played a league-record 53 games. They competed for six trophies
and won nary a one.
The Crew are in the throes of a similar whirlwind. The Crew had a full week off prior to Saturday's game – after playing 16 games in 10 weeks. Advancement in the CONCACAF Champions Cup has lent a savageness to their schedule. They've already traveled more than 6,700 miles going back and forth, twice, to Monterrey, Mexico, for CCC games. They have a 2,000-mile round trip still ahead of them – for the CCC final in Pachuca June 1.
It's like having your spleen removed for MLS competition. Do you need your spleen? Not necessarily. But the surgery hurts. Last year, LAFC lost in the final of the Champions League (the precursor to the CCC), then went on a 4-8-3 jag in MLS play – and then bounced back and returned to the MLS Cup final. They lost to a better, fresher Black & Gold team.
The Crew play their next three on the road, beginning in Montreal on Wednesday. Then comes their CCC final at Pachuca,
which will be their fourth game in 22 days. And it will mean everything. When you give up your spleen, you want it to be worth the pain of the rupture. A CCC title would rock the continent – only one other MLS team, Seattle in 2022, has won it – and give the Crew entry into the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Such victories bring multimillion-dollar windfalls to the club, yet the millions pale to the prestige of the accomplishment.
It's fair to be worried about the Crew's MLS plight. They're winless in their past seven league games. After Pachuca, they have two more road games (at New York FC and Messiami). They've already dropped to eighth place in the Eastern Conference, and they're almost assured of falling below the playoff bar before Memorial Day. Is that OK?
The Crew have already shocked two Liga MX powerhouses – they beat Tigres on the road, on kicks, and then vaporized Monterrey in stunning fashion – and soon they'll be in Pachuca, attempting the extend the impossible. The Champions Cup is the closest, most important and most prominent prize in front of them right now. It is all that matters at the moment. It has to be their focus.
By the way, after the Seattle Sounders won the Champions League in 2022, they went 10-13-4 over the remainder of the MLS season and missed the playoffs. It's a hard go. Celebrate while you can, I say.
marace@dispatch.com